Where do you take someone who’s about to leave Texas for a whole other country? Faced with this question recently, as two dear friends prepared to move to France, a group of us decided there was no place more apt than Bandera, the Cowboy Capital of the World. Nestled in the Hill Country about two-and-a-half hours from where we live in Austin, a group of six of us headed to Bandera for a weekend of toasting some of the things that make Texas great. We swam in the Medina River, which winds around the outskirts of town, and drifted through shops along Main Street by day. At night, we went to Arkey Blue’s Silver Dollar, the oldest continuously operating honky-tonk in Texas (not to be confused with Gruene Hall, the oldest honky-tonk, period), which is located down some stairs behind a covert door on the main drag. We were in for a treat: Arkey himself was playing on his bar’s stage that night, wearing a black necktie and lavishing the small crowd with covers of old-timey country hits that were perfectly danceable. Between sets, we played dice on our long wooden table, made selections on the bar’s old jukebox, and toasted the two friends who’d be leaving Texas within the next few weeks. By Sunday morning we were tired and full up on cowboy culture, sad to say goodbye but grateful for a weekend spent enjoying the state together. Plan your own Wild West weekend trip to Bandera after reading Contributing Editor Sarah Thurmond’s guide to the Cowboy Capital in our July/August issue. We covered a lot of ground on our brief trip, but I know I’ll be returning soon. —Hannah Smothers, Audience Engagement Editor | | | | The oldest dance hall in Texas recently got an upgrade in the form of an air-cooling system, which will keep dancers and concertgoers from overheating on hot summer nights. | Catch a different kind of surfer in Port Aransas, where a few good boys and girls from Go Team Therapy Dogs hop on boards in support of surfers with disabilities. | | | Designed in 1968 as a portable ski chalet, the Futuro House now sits just within Rockwall County limits near State Highway 276, a neon orange cylinder in the grass. Over the decades, it’s been used as an office, a bachelor pad, and much more. But how it landed where it currently sits is a mystery. | | | TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION | Texas beach camping is something of a coastal exception. In many states, shoreline development, private ownership, or local regulations make overnight camping on the beach difficult or prohibited. Texas’ combination of public beaches on an accessible coastline paired with a climate that often allows comfortable outdoor recreation well beyond summer means a Gulf Coast camping trip can be a realistic spring or fall getaway. | | | Universal Kids Resort brings to life its beloved characters and stories in ways that will wow even the youngest theme park goers. Open now. | | | Named after the Spanish word for cowboy, the Vaquero opened in 1946 within walking distance of Main Street. It underwent a facelift in 2021, but the 12 cabins retain their rustic charm with wooden beds, a patio, and a firepit. Most have a boot jack to help remove cowboy boots. | | | Locals joke that Bandera was destined to be declared the “Cowboy Capital of the World” because it was settled on the curve of the Medina River that, on a map, resembles the shape of a boot. By the 1870s, the Great Western Trail brought cattlemen and ranching to the area, leading to “guest ranches”—vacation destinations for city slickers seeking the cowboy experience. | | | | | Writer Ben Markovits wanted his son to see the Hill Country home where he’d grown up before moving to London. To do that, the pair unfolded their Brompton bicycles and headed out in search of memories and barbecue. “As kids, you tend to think of your neighborhood as a permanent state of affairs, but then, as a parent, when you move somewhere to raise your own, you realize you’re just riding a wave, and the wave moves on,” Markovits writes. | | | | A new backcountry hiking area opened this month at Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, allowing visitors to experience even more natural splendor. (KUT) | The Port of Galveston is looking into expanding its cruise infrastructure with a fifth cruise terminal, according to an updated 20-Year Strategic Master Plan. (Cruise Hive) | | | TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION | Deena the Chimp’s Stint as “Chief Chilihead” | A 1979 Dallas gathering of the Texas Chili Appreciation Society welcomed an unusual guest of honor: Deena the Chimpanzee. Deena was feted in the March ’79 edition of Texas Highways as “chief chilihead” of Dallas’ line of Tolbert’s Chili Parlor restaurants established by newspaper columnist and chili evangelist Frank Tolbert. Deena was a local fixture in Dallas in the ’70s and ’80s. Her handler, Mike Stower, booked her as entertainment for events through his firm Rent-a-Chimp Inc. Deena served as an unofficial mascot of the Dallas Cowboys, a more official mascot of the Dallas Tornadoes soccer team, a painter, an occasional escape artist, and, on one memorable occasion, judge of the Terlingua International Championship Chili Cookoff. By ’86, Stower had—for reasons that must be left between him and God—trained Deena to mimic an exotic dancer at parties, including a performance at the birthday of a 90-year-old Arlington doctor wherein Deena appeared wearing, briefly, a T-shirt reading “Party Animal.” Compared to that, chili judging seems downright tame. —Asher Elbein | | | You are receiving this message from Texas Highways because you requested it or because you have contacted Texas Highways and provided your email address. To ensure our messages always reach your inbox, please add us to your address book. | Texas Highways Magazine
6230 E. Stassney Lane
Austin, TX 78744 | Published ten times annually by the Texas Department of Transportation’s Travel Information Division, Texas Highways, the official travel magazine of Texas, encourages travel to and within the Lone Star State and tells the Texas story to readers around the world. | | | | |
